1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of gliding boards adapted to snowboarding.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
A snowboard has a length demarcated by a first end and a second end, a width demarcated by a first edge and a second edge, as well as a height demarcated by an upper surface and a lower surface or gliding surface.
To operate the board, a user has both feet affixed to the upper surface along a substantially transverse direction of the board. Conventionally, the end zones of the board are thinned down, or tapered, so as to deform during the operation. The deformation of an end zone enables the board to accumulate and then to restore energy, in the manner of the end of a blade-shaped spring. Therefore, the user, for example, can cause the elastic deformation of one end, by applying an impulse after shifting the weight of his body toward the end. The energy recovered during the impulses makes it easier to negotiate certain curves or to perform jumps.
The thinning of an end zone is obtained by making a core that is beveled toward each end of the board.
The core is then covered with various layers of materials to obtain the structure of the board.
It is known to select low-density materials to manufacture the core, in order to reduce the board mass. For example, the core can be made of wood, or of a foam of a synthetic material.
The core is shaped by machining an originally flat raw piece. The machining generates mechanical stresses in the raw piece, which tend to tear out portions of the core at the ends. The tearing occurs because the core is very thin at the ends. Therefore, it is necessary to select a material that has an adequate mechanical strength to make a core.
This means that certain low-density materials cannot be used to make a core, due to the fact that they cannot be machined.
This is especially true with wood, in the case where the wood fibers are oriented in the direction of the board thickness.
This is also true with honeycombed materials, such as those in which each of the juxtaposed cells is hexagonal.
The object of the invention more particularly is a board whose core can be made out of any low-density material.
According to the invention, a gliding board adapted to snowboarding has a length measured along a longitudinal direction between a first end and a second end of the board, a width measured along a transverse direction between a first edge and a second edge, and a height measured between an upper surface and a lower surface or gliding surface, the height in particular including a lower reinforcement, an upper reinforcement, and at least one core located between the upper reinforcement and the lower reinforcement, the board also having, from the first to the second end, a first end zone, a first contact line, a first intermediate zone, a first boot retaining zone, a central zone, a second boot retaining zone, a second intermediate zone, a second contact line, and a second end zone.
The thickness of each core is demarcated by two surfaces of the core parallel to one another, and at least one of the cores has a smaller width than the width of the board in each end zone.
This means that the thickness of the core is constant, and that the ends of the core are not beveled. The thickness of the core remains sufficient so that a machined raw piece keeps all of its portions, regardless of its constituent material.
For example, it is possible to make the core out of wood in order that the wood fibers be oriented in the direction of the board thickness. The advantage is that this orientation of the fibers improves the crushing strength of the board, in the direction of the thickness.
It is also possible to manufacture a honeycombed core from a metal such as aluminum, or from a plastic material. The advantage is that the board obtained is lighter than a conventional board and has an increased crushing strength.
In any event, the reduced width of at least one of the cores, at the end zones, enables the board to deform in order to accumulate and restore energy.